There is a need for a small, compact, efficient, eye-safe laser for a variety of applications. These include law enforcement, rifle enthusiasts, commercial mariners, sports enthusiasts, construction industry, search and rescue, fire fighting, skiers, yachting, golfers, and municipal agencies, among others. A number of solutions have been proposed.
For example, one such solution comprises a flash lamp or diode-pumped erbium glass with a mechanical Q-switch. However, this approach requires the use of several diodes and a mechanical Q-switch, resulting in a more complicated, inherently larger apparatus than desired.
Another solution employs a Nd-YAG pumped optical parametric oscillator, which relies on conversion of Nd emission to an eye-safe wavelength. The wavelength conversion results in lower efficiency and the apparatus requires active heating/cooling.
Thus, there remains a need for a small, compact, efficient, eye-safe laser.